


Angels & Demons

by Skifazoa



Category: Original Work
Genre: Angels, Deal with a Devil, Demons, Fate, M/M, incubus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-22
Updated: 2019-08-22
Packaged: 2020-09-23 21:15:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20346841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skifazoa/pseuds/Skifazoa
Summary: Would you make a deal with the devil to save your own life?





	Angels & Demons

Adrian Seymour’s mother always told him that his altruism would get him killed someday. He really hated to admit it, but as he lay bleeding in a dark city alley he thought she might be right. He replayed the last few minutes in his head, trying to figure out where he could have prevented this.

He had entered the alley when he heard sobbing in the darkness. Under a weak, flickering dock light he had found the old woman crying into her ragged coat. As he approached, he called out to her so as not to scare her, but she must not have heard. As he touched her shoulder, the woman had lashed out, plunging a broken kitchen knife into his stomach before rushing away into the darkness.

So here he was, in tremendous pain, surrounded by garbage and the scuttling of rats, thinking back on the decisions that brought him to this point. Even as his vision started to blur, he found that he didn’t regret any of his time helping people, even his last attempt that had left him on the ground here. His family had never understood that he only felt like he was worthy of the life he had been given when he was sharing with those that needed it.

But then there they were: the treacherous thoughts that spoke up from the back of his mind. I wish I’d taken some more time for me, he thought. His vision seemed to be wavering a little as he tried to focus on the shapes around him. I wish that I had gone out and tried to find someone to share this life with. Was it his imagination, or were the sounds of the rats getting slower? I wish that I wasn’t about to die alone. The world seemed to be stopping. The noises of the world had faded to a stop around him. The alley was terribly still.

“Be careful what you wish for, darling,” a deep voice spoke from in front of him. As he tried to focus, a figure materialized out of the darkness and approached him. It was a man with imposing posture and clean, simple clothing. He held himself like some sort of royalty as he looked down at Adrian with measured eyes.

“Who-who are you?” Adrian rasped, the effort sending jolts of pain through his core. The man squatted by his side and cocked his head at Adrian, staring at him with crimson eyes.

“Who do you think?” he asked, breaking into a dangerous grin. Adrian met his eyes, and choked on a breath as he inhaled.

“You smell like smoke and sex,” Adrian said, with as much contempt as he could muster. “There’s no doubt about what you are, incubus.” The man laughed and stood up again.

“First impressions can be deceiving young man,” he said, grinning wickedly. Then his appearance changed, long black hair tumbling down from his head, and great leathery wings bursting from his back. “Then again, not always.”

“What do you want?” Adrian asked, shifting positions to try and ease his breathing. “Maybe my thoughts stuttered, but I don’t remember wishing to be harassed by a demon as I died.” The incubus laughed again.

“You’ve got spirit, boy! I like that in a client.”

“I have no interest in making deals with the devil, thank you anyway.”

“Oh, dear, what was I just saying about first impressions? I think you’ll reconsider when I’ve told you about this one.”

“Not likely.” Adrian rested his head on the alley wall, feeling not as bad as he had a moment earlier. His vision had sharpened as well. He could now see that the demon was quite handsome, but his stomach knotted as he saw the sharp claws at the end of his fingers. The incubus knelt beside him again, running his claws lightly up Adrian’s leg. The sensation sent a shudder through him, though of disgust or arousal he wasn’t entirely sure.

“What would you say if I gave you your life back?” the demon whispered in Adrian’s ear. “Surely a good soul like you would be willing to sacrifice a little bit of something for that?”

“I have no interest in selling my soul, thank you.” Adrian said through clenched teeth. The claws were climbing his arm now, coming to rest on his shoulder as the incubus reclined next to him.

“Who said anything about a soul?” the incubus said playfully, a twinkle in his eye. “Everyone wants to trade their soul! No one ever asks what I want.”

“And what do you want?” Adrian asked hesitantly.

“Well, to be completely honest, I don’t get nearly enough action myself, despite the job,” the demon said in a tone that left no doubt what sort of action he was talking about. “At least not on my terms.”

“I’m not going to sell my soul, and I’m no prostitute either,” Adrian said, but his voice lacked conviction.

“Oh, come now,” the incubus pouted. “A long, healthy life handed back to you for a little bit of fun? That doesn’t sound like you’re paying much of a fee at all.” Adrian had to agree, it was a good offer. But still he hesitated. The demon sighed.

“How about we call the sex a perk, and you give me your time instead?”

“A mere technicality.”

“Oh lovely, you should know that’s everything in this world.”

“It’s not this world I’m worried about.”

“Trust me, He doesn’t like it either, but that’s the way it is.”

Adrian closed his eyes, and weighed the likelihood of the words being truthful. After a moment, slowly nodded.

“Oh, goody,” the incubus said, smiling wickedly. He pressed his hand against Adrian’s wound, and the pain quickly eased before going away altogether. When Adrian looked down at his stomach, the wound was gone and his shirt was whole and unstained. If he didn’t know any better, he never would have known he’d been stabbed. He stared at his shirt, not quite able to believe it. But he noticed a lack of one particular emotion in particular. Regret was absent from his mind. He didn’t regret his life up until now, and he didn’t regret the deal he made to keep living it. He looked up to thank the demon, but all he saw were the red eyes before surprisingly soft lips pressed against his. The world swirled around him and everything went black.

* * *

When Adrian woke the next morning, his heart thudded as he registered the weight of a hot body next to his. Before he threw himself off the bed in a panic, however, the events of the previous night came back in a rush of heat to his groin. After Ira, for that was the incubus’s name, had healed his wound, they had been transported back to Adrian’s townhouse. What had followed was several hours of intense, incredible sex before Adrian had fallen asleep in Ira’s arms. Now, as he stared down at the body beside him, he was shocked to see how different Ira looked. He had hidden his wings and claws away as they’d coupled, but his long hair had remained unchanged, and was now splashed across the pillow like an obsidian fan. But his face was at a stark contrast to the night before. Whereas in his waking hours, Ira was a mask of sensual, dominating energy, his face now was like someone had captured all the innocence and love the world could produce into a porcelain doll’s delicate features. There was a pureness in his sleeping expression that Adrian hadn’t seen the day before, and if he was honest, would never have thought the demon capable of.

“First impressions can be deceiving,” Adrian mumbled to himself. Ira stirred, opening his eyes slowly, and smiled sleepily at Adrian.

“Hmm…good morning,” he said, sitting up and pressing a kiss to Adrian’s cheek before pulling him back down into the pillows.

“Good morning to you too, Ira.” Adrian said, snuggling back under the covers. “Was that satisfactory payment for you?” Ira’s eyes opened again, looking at Adrian innocently.

“Whatever do you mean?” he asked. “Your payment is time, not sex. Sex is a perk remember?” Ira pressed his stiff member against Adrian’s hip as he said ‘perk’ and Adrian rolled his eyes.

“Sex, time, whatever,” he smiled at Ira. “Was it satisfactory?” he asked again, squeezing Ira’s hardness under the covers. Ira gave him a smile that made Adrian chuckle. “I take that’s a yes, then?”

“Indeed,” Ira said, running his hand in lazy circles across Adrian’s chest. “The sex, that is. There is still the matter of your payment.” Adrian’s smile faded.

“What do you mean?” he asked, suddenly scared.

“You got back your life in exchange for some of your time.” Ira said with his eyes closed, unconcerned.

Adrian’s expression darkened. He wasn’t angry about the sex. It had been fantastic, and he loved every minute of it. But he felt deceived.

“Care to explain yourself?” Adrian said after a moment, carefully controlling his voice. Ira cracked an eye open at him.

“God, humans can be thick sometimes.” He said, before closing his eye again and pulling Adrian closer. Adrian let himself be pulled in, but he remained stiff and cold towards Ira. Ira sighed, and sat up in the bed, shaking his leathery wings back into view.

“You’ve lived your life doing nothing for yourself, only stepping in to help others. Now, you can go out and live your life for _you_. But first, there’s one more person out there that needs your help.”

“Figures,” Adrian snorted. “I wish I’d taken more time for myself, and when I get it, I’m told to help others.”

“That person needs you as much as you need them,” Ira continued as if Adrian hadn’t spoken. “There is someone out there for you to spend the rest of your life with, but you need to find them and help them first.”

That caught Adrian off guard. He sank back into the pillows and closed his eyes, trying to wrap his mind around the demon’s words. He felt Ira shift in the bed before soft lips pressed against his forehead.

“You have to go out there and find them.” Ira whispered. “You won’t know them at first, but they’ll need a loving hand to lift them up, and you’ll provide that hand.”

“That doesn’t sound like the devil’s sort of work,” Adrian said, still staring at his eyelids.

“First impressions can be deceiving,” Ira whispered, moving towards the edge of the bed. Adrian reached out to run his hand over Ira’s wings one last time before he left. He felt them beneath his fingers as they slipped out of his reach. Feathered wings. Adrian’s eyes snapped open, and he sat up, looking around for Ira.

But he was alone.


End file.
